Wal-Mart Busts Out Its Own "Geek Squad"

As margins on actual wares grow slimmer, many retailers are looking to
soak up more cash in the form of services. Granted, that's increasingly
tough in the DIY universe that we live in, and even tougher in a
retailer that looks to save people money. In an odd move aimed to rival
Best Buy's Geek Squad, Wal-Mart has announced plans to offer its own
form of tech support for shoppers.

The mega-retailer has confirmed that it has started up a partnership with N.E.W.Customer Service Companies
in order to offer in-home setup services to those who buy their gear
from Wally World. In fact, the new offering will be in place prior to
the holiday season getting fully underway, so there's a good chance
things will take off this winter.

A Walmart Greeter, one of thousands that welcome over 100 million shoppers weekly...

Wal-Mart customers will be able to buy service plans on a prepaid card
ranging from $99 to $399, which honestly sounds like a curious way to
pay for in-home installation services. At any rate, the services
available range from standard television setup to wiring an entire home
theater system or home network, and all plans include preliminary
consultation and a tutorial after installation is completed.

It'll be interesting to see if bargain hunters spring for a service
plan; if you're going to Wal-Mart intentionally to save money, are you
really prepared to splurge on services? But on the other hand, you may
say that you're spending some of your savings on the installation that
you know you need help with.